Lionsgate Hints the Michael Jackson Biopic Is Just the Beginning
Michael may be just the opening act. Lionsgate says the team behind its Michael Jackson biopic is already gearing up to carry the story into future films.
I was already expecting Lionsgate to go big with its Michael Jackson biopic. I did not expect them to all but say, yeah, there might be more than one of these.
Lionsgate is quietly teeing up a follow-up
On the company’s latest earnings call, Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chair Adam Fogelson telegraphed that the story might not end with the first movie. He stopped short of confirming a sequel, but the studio clearly wants to keep this train rolling if the debut lands.
'While we’re not yet ready to confirm plans for a second film, I can tell you that the creative team is hard at work making sure that we’re in a position to deliver more Michael soon after we release the first film.'
That dovetails with earlier industry chatter that the project could be split in two. Puck previously reported the team reworked the script around how to handle Jackson’s later years, and that the changes opened the door to a two-part structure. None of that is official yet, but Lionsgate’s comments make it sound less like a wild idea and more like a plan they’d very much like to execute.
The teaser is out, and people are... divided
Lionsgate kicked off the marketing this week with the first teaser for 'Michael.' It’s directed by Antoine Fuqua and stars Michael Jackson’s real-life nephew, Jaafar Jackson, as the King of Pop. The reactions online swung hard in both directions:
On one side: fans saying the footage gave them goosebumps and sent them straight back to their childhoods. On the other: viewers worried the movie can’t possibly do his legacy justice, plus the usual eye-rolling about Hollywood’s never-ending parade of musician biopics.
There’s also skepticism bubbling up around how the film handles the toughest parts of Jackson’s life. Some posters claim the early cut painted one of his accusers as a vengeful villain; the word is reshoots followed. That’s unconfirmed, but it’s exactly the kind of creative choice that will get dissected frame by frame when the full trailer hits.
What the movie is actually covering
Lionsgate pitches 'Michael' as a look at Jackson beyond the arena lights, following him from the Jackson 5 days into the early solo years that made him, well, Michael. Expect a mix of offstage personal life and re-creations of major performances, with the film positioning this as the starting chapter of the larger story rather than the whole book.
Who’s making it (and when you’ll see it)
- Title: 'Michael'
- Release: April 24, 2026 (worldwide)
- Director: Antoine Fuqua (The Equalizer)
- Writer: John Logan (Gladiator, Skyfall)
- Lead: Jaafar Jackson as Michael Jackson
- Young Michael: Juliano Krue Valdi
- Colman Domingo as Joe Jackson
- Nia Long as Katherine Jackson
- Miles Teller as John Branca (portrayed here as a later manager)
- Tony von Halle in an undisclosed role
- Genre: Musical/drama
- Status: First teaser out now; studio hinting they want 'more Michael' not long after the first film
A quick read on the temperature
Jaafar Jackson looks the part, Fuqua knows how to stage scale, and if Lionsgate is already talking about follow-ups, they’re feeling bullish on box office. The swing factor will be the later-years material: how it’s framed, how much the movie chooses to take on, and whether that rumored two-part approach lets them separate the rise from the storm.